L.A. Rams' Andrew Whitworth Completes Ultimate Goal Before Retirement

Rams offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth wanted to establish a culture in Los Angeles first before winning a championship

Cole Thompson | Mar 16, 2022

Andrew Whitworth wore a blue blazer back in 2017 when he was introduced at the next franchise left tackle of the Los Angeles Rams. It was only fitting he left L.A. wearing the same attire.

Whitworth, the reigning Walter Payton Man of the Year and oldest offensive lineman to start in a Super Bowl, announced his retirement from the NFL Tuesday after a 16-year career. Following a 23-20 Super Bowl LVI victory over his former team, the Cincinnati Bengals, he made up his mind.

Leave a champion. Leave it out on the field.

Andrew Whitworth

“I think winning is important,” Whitworth said at his retirement press conference Tuesday, “I think culture is important. But I think the most important thing that I hope guys remember me for is that they believe in themselves."

Culture has always been synonymous with Whitworth's life. He established a winning mindset during his days at LSU. A second-round pick by the Bengals in 2006, he spent 11 seasons anchoring the offensive line for quarterback Carson Palmer and later Andy Dalton.

When it was time to call it quits in Cincinnati, Whitworth wanted to help establish a winning mentality on his new roster. Sean McVay, a then 31-year-old first-time hire, made a phone call to Whitworth's agent.

"Maybe I can't fight for them on the football field... but I'll fight for them in life." pic.twitter.com/EA2MgL5yfI
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) March 15, 2022

A coach younger than the player giving orders? No. Neither viewed it that way. There was mutual respect between the two from the start. McVay wanted to win. Whitworth wanted to establish something unique.

“Our plan is we’re gonna go there and we’re gonna be a part of making a culture where they’re going to win 'one day'," Whitworth said. "Like, we’re going to pour ourselves into this place and one day we’ll win.

“‘We probably won’t see any of that, but we’re gonna help create it.'”

Five years later, Whitworth saw what he created culminate on the turf at SoFi Stadium. McVay credited the "old guy" as the "backbone" of the success found in Los Angeles. The now 36-year-old said that while he might have been calling the plays, he was always learning under the wing of Whitworth.

“One of the things that made this team so special are leaders like Andrew,” McVay said. “When you look at this team, this past year and what these guys were able to do in terms of finishing the job. If you were to say, ‘What’s the one thing that I’ll always remember about the 2021 Rams,’ it’s that they played for something bigger than themselves. They wanted it more for somebody else.”

That someone else was "Big Whit" a player who almost didn't stick around following a season-ending injury.

Football is family. pic.twitter.com/tBVRCxIPr8
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) March 15, 2022

Before the start of the 2021 season, Whitworth contemplated retirement. His body was beaten. His head was elsewhere. After the Matthew Stafford trade, Whitworth wanted to run it back one more time.

It didn't matter what the Rams' outcome was last fall. It was Whitworth's last season. It just so happened that Los Angeles would make a run into the postseason against Arizona. And then Tampa.

Then San Francisco to host a Super Bowl against Whit's former team. He couldn't ask for a more full-circle ending.

“The most important thing in the world to me is that the people I’ve been around and lived life with feel better because they were around me, or they believe in themselves because they were around me," Whitworth said. "They believe things are more achievable because they were around me.”

Andrew Whitworth

Tears flowed down his cheeks as he delivered one final speech. Several teammates came to pay their respects at the press conference. Many hugs were shared and smiles protruded across the faces of the Whitworth family.

Whitworth came to L.A. to establish a culture and mentality that would remain in-tact well after his playing days were over. That was the mission from when the ink dried back in 2017.

Mission accomplished Big Whit.

Want the latest in breaking news and insider information on the Rams? Click Here

Want to join in on the discussion? Click here to become a member of the Ram Digest message board community today!

Follow Ram Digest on Twitter and Facebook.

Published Mar 16, 2022

COLE THOMPSON

Cole Thompson is a sports writer and columnist covering the NFL and college sports for SI's Fan Nation. A 2016 graduate from The University of Alabama, follow him on Twitter @MrColeThompson